Engineers for Exploration was founded in 2010 by Dr. Albert Lin, Dr. Curt Schurgers, and Dr. Ryan Kastner, to enable engineering students, who are already thinking about how to solve problems, to solve problems related to the exploration of our world, and to take those solutions into the field to actually do the exploration.

Our initial group of projects focused on using drones for remote sensing, particularly with respect to archaeology and support Dr. Albert Lin’s expedition searching for the tomb of Genghis Khan. These projects would pave the way for future projects to be run and developed by students, then taken by those same students into the field to pursue scientific exploration goals.

As the expedition to find Genghis Khan’s tomb began to wind down, we began a new slate of projects with a wider focus. Among these projects are some of our longest running projects, including Maya Archaeology and the Radio Tracking project. Both of these characterize the long-standing tradition we have of collaborating with other organizations conducting field research, providing valuable technological capabilities, and being able to send students out into the field to support field research and utilize the technologies developed in the lab.

As our program has matured, we have continued to grow the number of projects and collaborations we have within E4E. Currently, we are collaborating with 3 other organizations (USC Dornsife Spatial Sciences Institute, the Scripps Institute of Oceanography at UC San Diego, and the Institute for Conservation Research at the San Diego Zoo) to engage over 50 students in over 10 projects. We continue to develop new and exciting projects as opportunities for students to explore new aspects of the world surrounding us, as well as develop the skills and knowledge that enable them to be technical leaders.

Previous Projects

• TBD